“Rick, I really think that right now you need to think about calling
Avery and Guy as you don‘t want them to hear it from someone else when…”
Judy started once again.
“No, I already told you that I can’t bring this news to them unless
I’m certain of what’s happened. Avery’s already had enough going
on in her life and with this, well I just can’t do this to her right now
and with Guy,” Richard’s face drained of all color as he thought to his
estranged son, “oh Judy, this is going to kill him. He and Brooke
are so very close and if she’s gone…”
“He’ll need you to be strong for him,” Judy encouraged him, “He’ll
need to know that you can pull together as a family.”
“He sees me as the one thing that made his life miserable and regardless
of how I’ve tried to reach out to him, the only person who could do that
for him is Brooke. He loves her so very much that anytime he thought
he was in some kind of trouble, he would be ready to jump to her defense
and now, well, how can I tell my son that his mother could be gone forever?”
tears filled in his eyes as he bit back a lump in his throat, “Judy, how
can this be happening?”
“I don’t know,” she answered unsure of what to say as she reached out
to him realizing that perhaps the only thing she could do in a moment like
this was just hold on to him and be there with the support he needed as
suddenly it felt as though the world was changing with the tragedy that
surrounded the otherwise peaceful Lake Cardinal on this warm winter morning.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Jade wiped down the kitchen counter in Grady’s house while coffee perked along in the coffee maker. She wasn’t quite sure why she was still here, but somehow during the night, Grady had convinced her to stay. Maybe it was her own stupid hopeful belief that things could eventually work out that kept her here. Whatever it was, she wondered just what exactly could be accomplished by staying with Grady now that she wanted to beat him to a pulp.
She felt like a fool. How could she have been so arrogant as to believe that her influence in Grady’s life could get him to change his ways? She’d been living in a fairy tale, but it was all too obvious now that fairy tales simply didn’t come true.
Grady stepped into the kitchen and spotted Jade immediately. He stopped at the doorway and watched her for a moment. He’d known the very second he was left alone with Avery that all hell would break loose, and yet, for some reason, he’d allowed it to happen anyway. Hadn’t he known better than to just blurt out what he thought like that? Hadn’t he known that Jade would kill him when she found out? Maybe he’d just thought as he always had that he wouldn’t get caught. Somehow it always seemed that he did get caught and in the worst possible situation.
Somehow he’d been able to convince Jade to stay the night. He’d hoped that if they started fresh together in the morning, they’d be able to work things out. Only now, as he saw the tension in her shoulders as she stood against the counter, he didn’t think it would be as simple as he’d thought.
“Good morning,” Grady said softly as she turned to see him.
Jade spotted him and frowned. This would be so easy if she didn’t love him so much. Instead, it hurt like hell that she was going to have to lay down some laws that he either could take to heart or she’d be walking out the door.
“Morning. Coffee will be ready in a minute,” She spoke as she moved the cabinet to retrieve two mugs. She didn’t want to get started right away because she was terrified that she’d only get more lip service from him that would eventually break her heart. She just wanted to spend a little more time with him before the world came crashing down around them.
“I’m glad you stayed,” He said simply. He knew they were treading on dangerous ground now where only one false step would land them both in a world of misery.
She turned towards him and met his eyes. While his words felt sincere enough, she wasn’t sure if she could believe them, “Are you?”
“Do you really have to ask?” He asked as he felt her question sting him to his soul.
“After the last twenty-four hours, yeah, I really do,” She admitted as she poured them each a mug full of coffee.
“Jade, no matter what has happened, you have to remember that I love you,” He spoke with a desperate tone in his voice, hoping that somehow she would be able to believe in him.
She met his eyes and sighed, “You love your brother too, but that doesn’t stop you from trying to ruin his happiness, does it?”
“That’s different,” He defended.
“It’s not that different, Grady. You told me that you would try to put all that ugliness with Avery behind you, but you didn’t. The very first chance you got you lashed out at her, and that is not trying in my book,” She shook her head, “Grady, I don’t understand why you can’t just open your eyes and see that Avery isn’t as bad for Russ as you seem to believe. Russ loves her with his entire being…just like I love you. Why can’t you see that she may be flawed but he loves her anyway…yet again, just like I love you.”
“I wish it were that simple, but it isn’t. I’ve watched Avery destroy Russ’s life before, and I don’t want to watch it happen all over again. And believe me, Jade, it will happen. That woman doesn’t know how to be faithful to one man. She just finds one who amuses her for the time being before moving on to another poor slob to rip him a new one.”
“Avery is not Susan. Okay, I get that Susan screwed an Ashford behind your back, and I even understand that you’re worried about the same thing happening on Russ’s behalf. What I don’t understand is why you can’t give Avery the benefit of the doubt and see that she loves Russ and makes him happy. Why can’t you just see that?”
“Because it’s only an illusion, Jade. You can’t prove to me that the baby she’s carrying actually belongs to my brother. Lord knows she spent plenty of time with Brant Ashford not to mention that it wasn’t that long ago she was still hooked up with Bruce Mathis. Now, Russ comes along like a naïve knight in shining armor to save her ass,” Grady rolled his eyes, “And Russ is acting like a wet behind the ears boy in his whole hearted belief that the baby is his. He just wants to believe that he and Avery could pick up right where they left off and everything will still be fine and dandy.”
“Why can’t it? Why can’t things work out for a couple for a change?” Jade demanded, “Just because you’re too damn stubborn to let someone in to love you doesn’t mean that the rest of the world should be. You’ve closed off yourself to a lot of people who could have loved you, but you wouldn’t let them. That doesn’t mean that Russ should have to stop dreaming about true love. Why is it so impossible for you to believe that Russ and Avery can have the love that people dream of?”
“Because they can’t. She broke him into pieces one time before, and I watched him fall apart, Jade. I was there at the church when he found out Avery was gone. And then after she finally got around to sending him a letter to blow him off, Russ was a shell of a man. He lost his will to survive for a very long time, and I can’t help but wonder when the other shoe is going to drop. Sure things are great between them right now, but Russ thought things were great between them on his wedding day. That didn’t turn out so well, and now I’m just wondering how long it’ll really be before Avery turns on him again. And she will. She can’t resist the chance to jump at something she thinks is better.”
Jade shook her head, “And you can’t resist the chance to tell her how much you hate her.”
“It’s not like that really, Jade. It’s not that I’m trying to play out some vendetta against Avery. I just want to protect my little brother.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, your little brother is a grown man who can handle his own life and relationships. You, on the other hand, need some serious help in both arenas,” She declared as she carried her mug with her into the dining room.
“Jade, I’m trying here,” He began as he followed her into the adjoining room.
“No, you’re not,” She spun on her heel to face him, “You’re just treading water trying to stay afloat. You’re not trying to save yourself or our relationship. You told me you would try, but you didn’t really try at all. You put on a good show only long enough to get your claws into Avery one more time. So tell me, Grady, was it really worth it?”
“Worth what?” He asked in disgust, “I wasn’t out to try to get to Avery. I was only doing what I thought you wanted,” He countered.
“Don’t start putting your anger at Avery on me, Grady Denton. I did not ask Avery over here for you to lash out at her again. I thought you could behave yourself and repair your relationship with your brother. Stupid me,” She half laughed, “I actually thought that you were trying to start fresh, but that turned out to be just a stupid dream of a completely naïve girl.”
“I am trying to start fresh here, Jade,” He said desperately as he reached out to draw her near, “I’m trying to make a life for us.”
“No, you’re not. You’re still living with a world of anger, and that’s no way to start a life together,” Jade said tearfully, “I’m beginning to think that you were right when you said that we would never be able to work things out. Maybe I was just stupid to believe that this could ever work.”
“Jade, don’t give up on me,” He begged as he got down on his knees before her, “Please God don’t give up on me. You’ve brought me back to life with your love, Jade, and I would never have been able to come this far in my sobriety without you. Please don’t give up on me, Jade, please,” Grady pled with her as he wrapped his arms around her legs, doing his best to keep her from running away from him as he knew that he was teetering on a precarious ledge, and Jade was all that kept him from falling.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Blake stretched out from underneath the warmth of her blankets feeling
her toes creep out from the bottom of her bed as the first hints of the
morning pressed upon her soft skin. She wiggled her toes once again
savoring the sweet promise the new day had in store for her as she writhed
beneath her blankets stretching out as her eyes slowly fluttered open.
She felt a yawn touch over her lips as she turned her head to her side
seeing the figure hunched over in the recliner beside her bed. Almost
immediately a smile pressed over her features as she shifted on her side
to take all of him in as a soft sleepy sigh spilled over his lips and she
took the moment to just admire Seth from afar.
Propping herself up more completely on her elbow as she lay on her
side, Blake’s eyes scrutinized his appearance as she thought back to the
previous night when they’d been out back with one another. She vaguely
remembered him carrying her into her bedroom in a state of lethargy, but
more so she could recall the warmth that had filled her as his arms had
surrounded her. Last night she could’ve easily found herself wrapped
up in him forever, but given the way he was hunched up in her powder blue
recliner across the way, he certainly hadn’t given in to the temptation
that Blake surely would’ve been unable to resist after a night in his arms.
Now as the top three buttons on his burgundy colored shirt remained unfastened,
she got a good glimpse of the beginnings of his muscled chest as a smile
tickled over her lips at the memory of how good it had been to touch and
tease that perfect body of his--of the way his bronzed skin had tasted
over her lips. In that instant, she felt a blush spill over her features
and she found herself eternally grateful that he’d been sleeping and unaware
of her shameful thoughts of him. Still as her gaze collided over
his every powerful contour, Blake thought back to the times in the past
when they’d come so very close to that kind of sinful pleasure with one
another.
“Get a grip,” she warned herself knowing that by now she was certainly
cherry red as her face was now flushed with a combination of embarrassment
and desire run amuck on her.
Sitting up straighter in her bed, Blake began to push her blankets
aside in a slow, calculated movement careful not to awaken Seth as she
tiptoed out of bed making her way towards the bathroom connected to her
room. Unable to contain herself she stole another glance in Seth’s
direction smiling as she noticed his bare feet for the first time upon
her carpet. His shoes were carefully tucked away underneath the chair,
but now his toes, much like hers were exposed to the morning’s breath of
fresh air as they dangled out from beneath the tiny throw blanket he had
wrapped around his legs. Almost immediately Blake had a flash of
inspiration as she changed directions returning to Seth’s side as her gaze
played over those feet of his--those exposed, tempting toes that were stilled
with his slumber.
“I wonder,” Blake felt a smile tease over her lips as she repositioned
the nightgown she’d awakened mid-way through the night to change into in
a brief moment of awareness, she knelt down before Seth’s feet unable to
contain the wicked urges that had brought her back to him as her index
finger moved in beneath his foot, curling over the arch as his toes began
to wiggle in a reaction to her movement. Excitement brewed behind
her eyes as she repeated the movement watching him squirm once again showing
obvious signs of what she’d suspected as a smile licked over her lips,
“I thought so.”
“Just what do you think you’re doing,” Seth questioned groggily as
his eyes opened and he felt Blake’s finger trail over his foot in a quick,
teasing motion causing him to pull his foot away from her for a brief moment,
“Blake!”
“What,” she questioned innocently moving back to sit on her legs as
she was on the floor before him flashing him the most innocent blue eyes
she could offer up in his direction as her fingers played into a fold of
her nightgown on her lap, “I didn’t do anything.”
“Oh yes you did,” he couldn’t help but laugh as he shifted in the chair
tipping forward to eye her intently.
“No I didn’t,” Blake shook her head adamantly, “I haven’t done anything
Seth.”
“Yeah right,” he reached down to the floor pulling her up with one
swift motion into his arms as a gasp fell from her lips and he hugged her
in his lap, his fingers teasing over her sides, “Sure you weren’t.”
“Seth stop,” Blake wiggled over him feeling his method of tickle torture
upon her for the teasing she’d inflicted upon his unprepared toes earlier.
“Seth, knock it off.”
“Not a chance,” Seth argued with her as a smile flooded over his otherwise
sleepy features, “We’ll see who’s ticklish now.”
“I give okay,” Blake squealed her voice raising with the moment as
she wiggled over him, “Seth, okay you win. I was just playing around.”
“I didn’t quite hear you right…what did you say?” he taunted her continuing
to tickle her as she shifted over him once again.
“I said I did it. I was ticking you just to see if you’d wake
up and now I’m almost sorry I did,” she admitted unable to contain the
tears of laughter that pooled at the corners of her eyes with each teasing
flick of his fingers over her until he stopped abruptly.
“You really mean that?” he questioned his face a sudden mask of seriousness
as his dark eyes penetrated hers.
Blake watched him for a long moment of silence painting on a poker
face of her own before shaking her head with a chuckle, “Nope, not at all.”
“I didn’t think so,” he reciprocated her laughter hugging her in against
him as he kissed the top of her head, “You’re wicked. I hope you
realize that one Blake Ashford.”
“I know I am, but I know you love every second of it,” she teased back
leaning in to offer up a quick kiss upon his lips as the lightness of the
moment hung over them, but almost as soon as her lips met his, the intention
behind the kiss shifted as she found herself craving something more than
a playful moment between them. She pressed forward into his solid
strength, her arms sliding around his neck as he suckled upon her lower
lip, drawing out an explosion of tiny sensations rushing over her every
synapse as she thread her fingers through his hair urging him to deepen
the kiss as he held her.
Blake kept her eyes closed allowing the tiny bursts of fireworks going
off in her head to take control of her every impulse as his finger tips
cascaded over the white silken material of her modest nightgown.
She felt a tiny shiver race over her as Seth’s fingers fanned out over
her spine, smoothing over every crease in her nightgown as her arms dropped
down over his shoulders, over the thick, sinewy musculature of his well
sculpted arms as her heart fluttered with the movement. Their lips
remained intertwined in the hot fire of a kiss she’d initiated and as she
shifted over him, she couldn’t help but revel in the soft sounds of the
low, guttural moan that breezed past his lips into her kiss.
“Blake,” he murmured bringing his thick fingers into her golden tresses
as he tore his lips away from hers, “baby, you’re killing me here.”
“You have to admit it would be by far the sweetest death you could
ever imagine,” she whispered over his lips securing herself over his lap
as her smooth thighs now straddled the muscled expanse of his body feeling
the strength of him beneath her as her nightgown pooled up over her hips.
“I know I should, but I can’t argue that,” he tipped his head up to
claim her sinfully sweet lips in yet another tantalizing kiss as she rose
up on her knees for a brief moment before sinking down into his lap once
again, the warmth of her upon his body’s sudden awareness to her.
“I know that,” Blake teased her tongue over his bottom lip, clenching
his thick, dark hair beneath her fingers as she ground her hips against
him, a low whimper rising up inside of her as she felt Seth’s obvious arousal
beneath her, so very close to completing her, to ending the mystery of
what it would be like for them to be together if only they’d found a way
to break through those barriers that had separated them for so very long.
She dropped her fingers down over his abdomen suckling upon his lip a moment
longer as she whispered over his skin, “as you’d be a fool to even try.”
“I’m an even bigger fool for thinking I could resist you when you’re
all that I want in this world,” he confessed from his heart thinking to
the way he’d felt about her as she reached for his hands guiding them in
over her hips up underneath her nightgown as her blue eyes shone with the
obvious heat of desire. With her slender fingers up over his, she
guided his touch over the creamy smoothness of her flat abdomen, up over
rib cage until she urged him to cup her bare breasts.
Without thought or reason, Seth eagerly stroked her watching the soft
sighs of anticipation that fell from her now parted lips as she rocked
her body over his, bringing forth so many wild and wonderful fantasies
that had haunted him since the day they’d experienced their falling out
between them. Her golden hair fell back over her shoulders as his
thumb skimmed over her aching peak watching as another whimper erupted
from within her.
“Seth,” she hissed his name closing her eyes and releasing her hold
on his hands before her fingers raced up to his dark hair, urging him in
closer to her. She rocked her body over his as his lips dropped down
upon her shoulder, tasting the silky, smoothness of her pale flesh as his
own heart was pounding wildly in his chest.
“You’re so beautiful, Blake,” he whispered feeling her squirming grow
more urgent as the strap on her nightgown fell off of her shoulder loosening
the material with the movement and as more of her luscious curves were
revealed to him, he felt his heart leap into his throat as the moment seemed
to stand frozen in time for him with her in his arms.
“I’ve thought about you for such a long time,” Blake admitted honestly
noting the way his eyes cast over her as if he’d found himself mesmerized
by her and her beauty. She wiggled a bit on his lap seeing the way
his dark eyes reached out to her, and in those few seconds shared between
them, a jolt of boldness poured over her as she shimmied her nightgown
down her body, allowing it to drop down to her waist as she revealed herself
to him.
“Blake,” he spoke her name in a low whisper, his eyes caressing her
every curve as though her body was a temple to be worshipped and as she
felt the morning air upon her, she sensed a hesitance from within him.
He pulled his hands out from beneath the material of her nightgown as though
his touch could be the thing to cause her to crumble and shatter into a
million pieces before him, but his eyes, oh the way they looked at her,
seeing into her and caressing her without so much of a whisper or a breath
coming from him as his eyes spoke volumes about what he was feeling for
her in a moment like this.
“Touch me Seth,” she pleaded with him reaching for his hands and guiding
them up over her curves once again as a moment of brazen boldness seemed
to course through her veins, “I want to know what it’s like to have your
hands on me again.”
“Blake, I want to touch you more than you can even begin to imagine,”
he confessed allowing her to control his movements as he gently caressed
her aching flesh. Unable to control himself he leaned forward placing
a soft, hint of a kiss upon her breastbone before turning his attention
to the dusty mound before him, “I want to know all I can about loving you.”
“Then love me Seth,” she pleaded with him arching towards him as his
mouth collected her rose tipped peak offering a world of pleasure that
she’d spent a great many nights fantasizing about between them. A
soft cry escaped from her lips as he took his time drawing out sensation
after blissful sensation from within as his fingers stroked the unattended
mound leaving no room for neglect before his mouth teased over her again
and again.
“Oh Seth,” she tugged on his hair claiming his lips in a heated frenzy
as desire raged over her and she found herself crashing into the forbidden
world of pleasure with him, “Make love to me.”
“Blake…” Seth began growing rigid upon her words as if suddenly colliding
with the thunderous roar of a waterfall as he forced himself to break away
from the kiss, despite the way his body was craving to give in to her every
desire.
“Seth please,” Blake begged of him once again as she noticed the hesitance
behind his features.
“Blake no,” he drew in a heavy, labored breath closing his eyes as
though looking at her one more time would be his undoing as this was truly
the one thing he’d wanted more than anything in his world.
“Seth, I know that you said that you wanted to…” she started to protest
as he lifted his index finger to her lips to gently silence her.
“Sweetheart, if I make love with you, then I’m certain it’ll be my
undoing,” Seth whispered tightly refusing to open his eyes as his heart
raced in his chest pulsing fiercely as the scent of her, the very warmth
of her within his reach sent him into a tailspin of longing and desire.
“But Seth, I don’t understand,” she frowned blinking back on the confusion
of the situation as his eyelashes fluttered open and his brown eyes fixed
upon her reaching into her and tugging at something she couldn’t quite
put a place on within as another sigh fell from his lips.
“Yes, you do sweetheart,” Seth traced the outline of her lips as a
poignant expression crossed over his otherwise handsome features, “Blake,
if we make love right now, all that will remain is confusion and I’m not
going to confuse you anymore than I already have. I’ve turned your
world upside down time and time again and given that you’ve been going
through a whole world of chaos, then as right as this situation feels in
this moment, you’ll end up regretting what comes next.”
“No, no I won’t,” Blake argued with him shaking her head as his fingers
traced her cheekbone gliding up into her hair, “Seth, I don’t regret a
moment of anything I share with you. I know that I’ve been hurt and
I still ache at what’s happened, but this...well, I’ve never, ever regretted
a moment with you…other than the moments that were stolen from us…”
“Blake, I don’t want this to be one of those stolen moments for you,”
Seth insisted overcome by the moment, “I don’t want to know how wonderful
it is to make love with you only to know that once we’ve crossed that line,
that you’ll live in a sea of regret. I don’t want to hurt you and
more selfishly I know that once I touch you--that once I love you, I’ll
never be able to let you go again…not ever.”
“Seth…” she began again as he cupped her face in his hands.
“Blake, I know you’re not ready for that…I wish you were…I wish we
were, but right now, well now what you need from me is for me to do this.
As much as I hate it, I need to prove myself to you before you can give
yourself to me completely. I need you to see me for who I am and
know the truth about my intentions,” he paused as a glimmer of sadness
washed over him, “There can’t be any room for doubt or regret when we make
love as I want you to see my heart--to see the love I feel for you and
not have anything else clouding that.”
“But Seth I…” she started feeling a moment of something that could
quite possibly resemble guilt sweep in over her.
“Sweetheart, maybe it’s time I should get going,” he exhaled a painful
breath as he reached down to her nightgown, slowly bringing it up over
her body to cover her from his hungry eyes before he lost the strength
to do the right thing as the mere memory of tasting her, of touching her
was sure to be his undoing if he lingered in a moment of temptation.
“No,” Blake shook her head an uneasy feeling settling in the pit of
her stomach, “please don’t go just yet.”
“Blake I…” Seth began turning his attention to her remarkable blue
eyes.
“Stay for a while,” she urged him as a slow breath spilled over her
lips, “I can take a quick shower and then we can have breakfast.”
“Blake, I don’t know if that’s a good idea as the very thought of you
in there,” he motioned towards her bathroom, “naked would probably lead
me to make some bonehead decision that’ll take away from everything I’ve
just promised you.”
“Then let’s even the playing field,” Blake suggested decidedly.
“How so?” he gave her a curious look wondering where the spark of mischief
burning behind her eyes was coming from.
“You can go take a shower in Kenny’s bathroom there while I freshen
up and then we can meet downstairs for breakfast,” she suggested quickly,
“as I’m sure he’s got something you can change into as he wouldn’t mind
at all.”
“Blake, I still don’t think…” he began again as she placed her finger
over his lips to silence him.
“That way while you’re thinking about me, I can imagine what you’re
doing,” her eyes fell over him once again as her tongue dragged over her
lower lip in an involuntary movement, “that way you’re not the only one
in agony.”
He couldn’t help but let out an ironic laugh, “Blake, you are the only
woman I’ve ever met that has made showering alone sound erotic.”
“Well, we could always skip over that part about being alone and you
could join me in my shower,” she suggested coyly as a blush fell over her
features, “We could have a hands off policy for the duration of the shower.”
“Baby, if I spent one more moment around your beautiful, naked body,
then I’m going to succumb to temptation and we both know that really isn’t
what’s best for us,” Seth sighed heavily wishing that he could just let
loose and give up on being so stubborn about doing things the right way,
but as he thought of the great many things his father had done to manipulate
the world around him--the ways in which Dimitri had taken great pleasures
in giving in to the self-serving hedonistic side that ruled his life, Seth
vowed he wouldn’t repeat those mistakes that his father had gone to as
they had ultimately torn Seth’s life apart. With that thought in
mind, he drew in a slow, determined breath, “I think that either I should
leave or we stick to plan one about my finding something in Ken’s room.”
“Somehow I had a feeling you were going to say that,” Blake’s shoulders
slumped as she reluctantly repositioned herself on his lap careful not
to spark the flames that were simmering beneath the surface between them.
“In the long run, I hope one day you’ll understand why it has to be
like this,” Seth explained watching her pull up off of the recliner and
steadying herself on her feet once again before him.
“I understand Seth,” Blake confessed with a quick nod turning her eyes
to the floor before she forced herself to watch him rise up from the chair
once again, “I just wish it didn’t have to be this way.”
“So do I,” he confessed reaching out to touch her face in a chaste
caress, “but I’m hoping for the day that all of that can change for us
as I truly believe it’ll happen once the truth shows itself.”
“I hope so too,” Blake replied with a heavy sigh wondering if she’d
made too hasty of a movement in letting go of Seth Alexander, but as much
as she hated to admit it, right now he had a point--one that she was certain
she’d appreciate once this initial moment of longing had passed between
them, but until then she was quite certain she was going to be in for a
long, hard morning of frustration as the walls between them were nothing
in comparison to the inner voice guiding her heart back in the direction
of the man that she’d fought so hard to forget.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Ken held Caitlin’s hand as he sat beside her bed. After the doctors had examined her, deemed her stable enough to be moved from the ICU, and she’d been moved to a private room of her own, Ken had returned immediately to her side. While she’d returned to sleep after being examined and moved, she was still responsive to his touch.
He smiled as he lightly brushed his fingertips along her cheek. He’d been hopeful that she would regain consciousness, and now that he could feel her squeeze his hand in hers, it felt a bit like a miracle.
Caitlin stirred gently and looked towards him as she gave his hand a gentle squeeze, “Hey you.”
“Hey yourself,” He spoke softly as he lifted her hand to his lips for a gentle kiss, “Do you need anything? Do you want a doctor or a nurse? Can I get you anything…anything at all?”
“No,” She shook her head gently as she looked to him with tired eyes, “All I want and need is to have you here with me,” She said as she smiled at him weakly.
“That’s my thoughts exactly,” He pressed another kiss to her hand, “I’ve been so scared that I’d never get to tell you just how much I love you. I’ve been terrified that the last time I saw you would be a time filed with pain,” He paused, “I want to spend happy times with you, Caitlin. I want to push the rest of the world out of the way and just make the world a beautiful place to be for us…just us.”
“Shhh,” She urged him, “Ken, I’m not going anywhere.”
“Thank god for that,” He said with a soft smile, “I was terrified that I’d never get the chance to tell you just how much I love you. I wanted you to know that you are everything in the world to me.”
“Ken,” She spoke as she motioned for him to come closer. She touched his cheek as she met his eyes, “I love you so much,” She whispered as he eased his forehead against hers, “You brought me back from oblivion. Thank you for loving me,” She said softly as she drew his lips to hers for a tender heartfelt kiss.
Ken held onto Caitlin’s hand as he lowered his head to her shoulder to stay close to her. He wasn’t going to leave her now that she had come back to him. He would never leave her side again.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Zack stood outside the room where Kenneth Ashford sat at Caitlin’s side like a caring lover. While he put on a good show, Zack had a sinking suspicion that things were nearly as forgiven as Ken would have liked. In fact, he was going to make sure that Caitlin remembered just why she had been so vulnerable when Jimmy attacked.
He groaned as he looked to the floor and rubbed his temple. He hadn’t gotten a lot of rest since Caitlin’s attack, and now that she was conscious again he could probably sleep without tossing and turning. He knew his body was anxiously awaiting the moment when he’d finally give in and let himself rest.
“Zack, you should go home and get some rest,” Julia announced as she placed her hand upon his shoulders.
“Not until I have a word with Ashford in there,” Zack frowned as he glanced back towards the room, “He needs to know that just because Cait’s awake, it doesn’t mean he’s welcome.”
“Why do you hate him so much?” Timothy asked from his seat nearby, “What has he done to your sister to make you hate him?”
“I don’t really hate him. I just don’t trust him. He and Cait were fighting before the attack, and I got the impression from her that he was upset with her for something stupid. I’ve tried to keep him away from her because I was afraid he would upset her,” Zack explained.
“But he didn’t upset her, Zack. Just look at them,” Julia urged as she watched Ken and Caitlin inside the hospital room, “Caitlin came back to us because Ken was at her side. She found her strength because of him,” She smiled, “She truly loves him, and no matter what petty argument they had before, it doesn’t matter now. All that matters is that Caitlin is awake.”
“It does matter, Mom. She would have been more aware of her surroundings if she hadn’t been so preoccupied with whether or not Ashford was upset with her. And then to make matters worse, Blake practically told her that she was a liar before Caitlin left my apartment,” Zack ran his fingers through his shortly cropped hair, “So I didn’t want her around either.”
“Blake is Caitlin’s best friend. While things might have been tense before the attack, I’m sure that Blake wanted nothing but Caitlin’s recovery,” Julia attempted to reason with her son.
“I don’t want to hear anymore defenses of the Ashfords, okay?” Zack took a deep breath as he spotted Johanna coming towards them. He watched her approach and wondered just how she would try to manipulate this situation.
“I heard Caitlin was doing better so I thought I’d drop by,” Johanna explained her presence as she looked between all the members of the Vaughn family.
“She’s doing much better,” Julia smiled, “I’m glad you dropped by. I think Zack needs to be reasoned with.”
“Oh really?” Johanna asked with a slight smile, “What’s he being stubborn about this time?”
“To answer that question thoroughly would take all day,” Timothy quipped with a smile.
“Right now, I think he needs to go home to get some rest,” Julia answered as she looked to her son, “Zack, you don’t have to worry. We’ll be here with Caitlin.”
“I told you that I’m not going until I have a word with Ashford,” Zack reminded them.
“Jo, could you please take him home?” Julia pleaded.
“Zack?” Johanna spoke his name as she reached out to lightly touch his arm, “You should rest. If nothing else, go home, take a nap, and come back to be with Caitlin tonight. You can’t really be here for Caitlin if you’re a walking zombie.”
Zack glanced to her and saw the concern in her eyes. For some reason, no matter how hard he tried to distance himself from her she found a way to break through his defenses. He nodded, “Okay, I can do that.”
“I’ll take him home,” Johanna smiled at Julia, “Tell Caitlin I’ll come back by to see her later. I’m sure all of you want to spend time with her right now.”
“Yeah, but right now, Caitlin only wants to spend time with one person,” Timothy stood and approached his wife, slipping his arms around her, “And I think it’s just what she needs.”
“So do I,” Julia smiled as she leaned back into her husband’s embrace.
“I wish I could be so sure,” Zack added before he and Johanna walked towards the elevators to leave the hospital. He might be leaving now, but he would have his chance to warn Ken not to mess with his sister. He wasn’t about to let any Ashford harm his sister…no matter what their relationship with Caitlin was.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“I find it hard to believe you’re having this much trouble with your
computer,” Jenna grumbled clicking away at a few keys on the keyboard to
Hart’s office computer as he leaned in over her shoulder watching her intently
not really caring about what was going on with the computer she’d been
so furiously working away with for the last half hour after he’d invited
her over to help him work out a few things he’d been having ‘trouble’ with,
“I mean it’s all very simple as you just click control and then this key
right here…”
“Uh huh,” Hart nodded clearly not paying attention to what she was
really saying as his finger tips teased in over her shoulder before he
knelt down beside the chair she was seated. He took a long moment
to admire the soft, sensual curve of her neck before temptation grew too
hard to resist and he dropped his lips down to steal a taste of her warm
as honey skin. The scent of her exotic perfume tantalized his senses
in every way imaginable as he spoke up in the first hints of a whisper
beneath her earlobe. “Has anyone ever told you how good at this computer
stuff you are?”
“Has anyone ever told you how transparent you are,” Jenna questioned
finally feeling a moment of clarity fall upon her as she turned her head
to see the mischief burning behind his eyes as he slowly pulled his lips
away from her skin, “You never had any computer problems here, did you?”
“Of course I did,” he nodded adamantly pointing haphazardly to the
monitor before him, “as you could clearly see I didn’t have the first clue
what was going on there this morning.”
“Hmm, so then if I hit this button right here then you wouldn’t have
any idea what was going on right,” Jenna teased her finger over the delete
key as Hart’s brow lifted with a quick flash of panic and he collected
her wrist in his fingers bringing it up to his lips.
“I’m just guessing you probably shouldn’t be doing that there, Jen,”
he offered a quick tease of his lips over the pulse point in her wrist
feeling her body’s responsiveness to him as his eyes perused her within
that one savory moment.
“And I’m thinking that you need to come up with better excuses to find
ways to get me over here,” Jenna spun his chair around so that he knelt
before her. Unable to contain herself she shook her head at him as
a soft groan spilled over her lips, “You’re hopeless I hope you realize
that.”
“Hopeful is the more operative word in this situation,” Hart remarked
with a teasing wink, “and besides can I help it if the woman I love just
seems to have the golden touch with my computer?”
“You really expect me to believe that one,” Jenna threw out a skeptical
look.
“Well considering that you seem to have it with everything else that
surrounds you,” he crept up in towards her collecting another soft kiss
from her lips, “I’d find it hard to believe that there was anything in
this world that you didn’t excel at.”
“Good answer,” Jenna smiled against the kiss, “and I’m thinking that
it gets you extra brownie points there for waking me up early on my day
off to come down here and do this.”
“Well, as much as I hated doing such a dreadful thing, the computer
truly needed your touch,” Hart curled his arms in around her waist as he
knelt before the chair eyeing her intently.
“I’m starting to believe that the computer wasn’t the only one in need
of it,” she teased her fingers over his tie tugging on the end of it as
she claimed another savory kiss from him.
“Truth be told I was missing you immensely last night after Wayne decided
it was a good night for bonding with you,” Hart’s lip curled into a frown,
“as I’d had such high hopes for the rest of the night between us…”
“You mean after us nearly singeing everything in my office,” Jenna
arched a perfectly sculpted brow, “What were you hoping for next?
That we’d burn my apartment down?”
“I was thinking along the lines of us generating some very deserving
heat between us,” he nodded as a goofy grin spread over his features, “though
I must confess that I had envisioned a certain degree of pleasure to accompany
it this time instead of a rain storm.”
“Hmm, well I don’t know, there is something to be said about you half
naked and wet there,” Jenna traced her fingers up over his tie further
pulling him in closer towards her, “but last night Wayne really needed
someone to talk to.”
“Something wrong,” Hart questioned with obvious interest.
“He’s just going through a lot of pressures right now with his thesis
and he wanted some help with it,” Jenna admitted thinking back to her late
night with her brother, “I’d made the mistake of mentioning that I didn’t
have to go into work today, which in retrospect must’ve been foresight
telling me I’d be too embarrassed to be in there today, but nonetheless
I’d promised Wayne that when I had a spare minute, I’d be there to discuss
his thesis with him.”
“And how is it going?” Hart inquired propping his hands on the arms
of his chair as his eyes memorized every beautiful line of her features.
“Well, it’s going and I think he’s doing a great job with it, but alas
Wayne is a perfectionist, so what is good to me feels like it should be
a revision for him,” Jenna sighed thinking about her brother’s determination
and reasoning.
“Gee, now where have I heard that one before,” Hart chuckled with mild
amusement as he eased his index finger over the bare skin of her arm approaching
her elbow. “I mean it’s not like the need for perfection doesn’t
run in the family there, now does it?”
“I don’t feel the need for perfection,” Jenna began to object noting
his obvious look of disbelief, “Well it’s true Hart. I mean sure
I might strive for order in my life, but it’s not necessarily a quest for
perfection, but more so a hope to find some sense of peace in my life…”
“I see,” he rose up on his knees to bring his lips just above hers,
“and what do we classify as in your life exactly?”
“Chaos,” Jenna replied with a soft huff as her gaze dropped down to
his tempting lips.
“Hmm, so then I guess it would be safe to assume that all your theories
on order are going out the window as we get closer as it seems that chaos
suits you well,” Hart inched in towards her to offer up a quick kiss before
she pulled back in retreat.
“I hate chaos,” Jenna frowned in response thinking of how hard she’d
worked to maintain a sense of stability in her life.
“But you do love me,” Hart winked at her easing in towards her in an
another attempt to bridge the distance between them.
“Ah, I’m afraid that does seem to be my downfall in life,” she sighed
heavily unable to contain the laugh that built up inside of her as he reached
out to her pulling her down out of the chair onto the carpeted floor with
him.
“I’ll give you downfall,” he chuckled pinning her down beneath him
as he rolled over on top of her stretching his body over hers as their
eyes connected, “Now see, aren’t you glad that I coaxed you into coming
over here this morning?”
“I don’t know,” Jenna’s arm curled around his torso as he hovered over
her, “that all depends.”
“On what?” he inquired dropping down towards her to steal another playful
kiss.
“On whether or not you brought me here to have us make fools of ourselves
here at your workplace,” she teased back at him as their lips parted.
“Well, you know ordinarily I’d have to say that turnabout is fair play,
but in this particular instance, it would seem that we have the office
all to ourselves and since I spent most of the night in here catching up
on the things that I would’ve much rather put aside to be with you, I think
it’s safe to say that there will be no room for embarrassment this morning,”
Hart promised her confidently as his palm teased over her side, down over
her hip in a tender caress.
“Hmm, well are you sure about that?” Jenna questioned tipping up to
collect a kiss from him, “I mean there aren’t any lit candles I should
know about, right?”
“I threw them all away before I even thought about calling you,” he
assured her with a goofy grin, “and Ken is at the hospital I’d imagine
as he’s been having a rough week. Judy’s not coming in until later
this afternoon and well, the way I see it, this morning is all about you
and me…”
“So you thought you’d cook up some silly story about my fixing your
computer just so that you could give me ample opportunity to dive into
your briefs, huh?” Jenna fought to suppress the giggle building up inside
of her as they lay on the floor together hidden behind his desk.
“Something along those lines,” he nodded eagerly while lifting a curious
brow, “Tempted are you?”
Jenna remained silent for a moment before curling her arms around him
with an emphatic movement, “Oh you bet I am.”
“Now we’re talking,” Hart exclaimed bursting with enthusiasm as his
lips collided with hers in a moment of untamed frenzy as he found himself
more than eager to enjoy some alone time with the woman he’d fallen for,
but before he could truly immerse himself in the moment with her, the faint
sound of her cell phone came from up on top of the desk bringing them once
again painfully back to reality. A frown pressed over his lips as
he noticed her immediate reaction was to get up and answer the phone.
“Hart,” she gave him a pointed look as he captured her wrist in hand
bringing it up over her head on the carpet.
“No way,” he insisted capturing her lips in another eager kiss, “I’m
not going to let this time pass us by…”
“Hart, I really should…” Jenna began to argue finding herself all too
tempted by his spell binding kisses upon her.
“Jen, tell me that you’re just going to let this go for once,” he pleaded
with her, his hands working their magic over her curves as he longed to
take the time to spend these precious moments between them.
“Hart, I would, but I promised Wayne if he needed anything more, that
he could call me on my phone,” Jenna explained with a frustrated sigh.
“So let him leave a message. Tell him we’ll both help him with
his thesis paper in a few hours,” Hart suggested brightly, “as I’m sure
we’ll be of a much better mind by then…”
“Hart, I promised,” she repeated with a tiny groan, placing her hand
in the center of his chest to nudge him away from her before wiggling out
from beneath him to retrieve her phone. Once she’d held it in her
hand, she frowned seeing the caller id as suddenly she wondered if this
was just another sign fate was giving her about the state of her relationship
with Hart. Casting one last look in his direction to see his puppy
dog eyes, she drew in a slow breath before answering the call, “Hello.
Yes…no, I wasn’t…of course not…”
“Jenna,” he reached out to her watching as she rose to her feet speaking
with the caller on the other end of the line. He groaned inwardly
laying back on the carpet as he could hear her short, proper responses
and he began to wonder how in the world she could be so clear headed and
reasonable at a time like this when all he could think about was ripping
that phone out of her hand and bringing her back down to the floor with
him once again so that they could finish what they’d started.
Suddenly a flash of what they could do in finishing swept over him
and Hart decided that maybe waiting for her on the floor wasn’t such a
good idea after all as he sat upright taking in a slow breath. A
few seconds later he rose to his feet seeing her finish her phone call
just in time for him to lean over the side of his desk taking a seat as
he winked at her.
“So what time did you tell Wayne we’d be there?” Hart questioned suggestively,
“Hopefully not before noon.”
“Actually,” Jenna took in a slow breath turning around to face him
as her lightness was replaced by something darker, something that had sprung
forth after the phone call she’d just finished with, “that was work.”
“Is something wrong,” Hart questioned standing up once again as her
features shifted with contemplation.
“Yes, no, I don’t think so…I mean I’m not sure,” she inhaled a slow
breath rubbing her palms together as she tried to process the information
that had fallen onto her lap, “It’s just, well it seems as though there’s
been an accident out by Lake Cardinal.”
“What kind of accident?” Hart questioned noticing the apprehension
behind her eyes.
“Brooke Morrison’s car was pulled out of the lake earlier this morning,”
she explained shifting on her feet as the thought sank in.
“So you’re saying that you’re being called in because Brooke Morrison
is dead,” Hart reasoned thinking about the situation at hand.
“Not necessarily,” Jenna shook her head as the thought hung over her,
“They just called to alert me to the situation in the event that she’s
pulled from the lake. They have divers down there right now searching
for her, but so far they’re coming up empty…”
“Then there’s a chance that she’s still out there,” Hart offered up
hopefully watching the expression that crossed over Jenna’s features.
“Given the brief run down they gave me of the accident, I wouldn’t
be surprised if they found pieces of Brooke in the bottom of Lake Cardinal,
which means that I should probably start thinking about what comes next…like
maybe going to see Avery so that she knows I’m there for her.”
“Avery,” Hart repeated as a moment of sudden realization passed over
him, “Oh God, that’s her mother.”
“Exactly,” Jenna nodded in response, “and while Brooke and Avery have
never truly seen eye to eye on things, something like this is bound to
upset her. I mean, my God, what is this world coming to Hart?
First my best friend is the target of a serial killer’s obsession and now
her mother dies.”
“It doesn’t seem right,” Hart nodded in agreement.
“That’s putting it mildly as you have to wonder if karma is just out
to work a number over Avery,” Jenna silently cursed the moment as she scanned
his office seeking out her jacket, “and here I was having a tantrum because
my mother lied to me about my father and I was thinking that I had it so
bad, but here Avery could be without her mother.”
“Jen, I think those are two entirely different situations there,” Hart
reached out to her seeing something completely independent of the situation
with Brooke flashing through her mind.
“Even so, I’ve been sitting in a state of self pity here when I should’ve
been thinking about how good things are going. I mean sure Brooke
was a bitch, but she’s Avery’s mother and when they pull her out of the
lake…”
“You mean if they pull her out of the lake,” Hart corrected her.
“If and when,” Jenna added with a heavy sigh bringing her fingers through
her hair, “well it’ll be yet another moment where I get to deliver some
pretty awful news to Avery over the last few months.”
“So who says that you need to be the one to deliver the news there,”
Hart shrugged his shoulders, “I mean by now I’m sure she’s already heard
about the situation and by the time you speak with her, hopefully the emotional
anguish will have a chance to settle in as you and I both know that you
aren’t responsible for those who come into your door there after the fact.”
“Even so, this doesn’t make this any easier,” Jenna replied with an
air of sadness, “In fact, maybe I should call Wayne. He and Guy were
friends growing up and I’m sure that Guy will need someone to talk to at
a time like this considering that he and Brooke were so very close.”
“Guy?” Hart repeated with obvious confusion.
“Avery’s brother,” Jenna informed him honestly, “He’s had a hard time
with some things growing up, but he and Wayne are still pretty good friends.
I’m sure if something’s happened to Brooke, then Guy is going to need all
the support he can get at a time like this,” she finished reaching for
her purse, “I’ll just call Guy and then check in with work and if there
isn’t any further news on Brooke, then I’ll go and pay Avery a visit and
see how she’s holding up.”
“Wait a second,” Hart urged reaching for his jacket, “I’ll go with
you.”
“Hart, you really don’t have to as…” Jenna began again.
“I know, but I want to. I want to be there for you as you’re
there for your friend and hey when you call Wayne, if he’s up to speaking
with Guy, then we can go pick him up. How’s that?” Hart suggested
hoping to help out in the current situation.
“I’ll call Wayne and tell him we’re on the way over,” Jenna decided
after a moment’s thought, “then I can call and check in with the office
from Wayne’s hotel.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Hart decided realizing that once again life had
thrown his plans for him and Jenna a curve, only this time he realized
there would be other moments for them as the loss Avery and her family
may be feeling would take precedence over whatever sparks had been flying
between him and Jenna.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Unable to quell the restlessness inside of him, Russell stepped into the brand new nursery looking around the room as traces of his mother’s handiwork lit up the nursery walls bringing forth a sense of life and joy that his one time home office had been lacking. Even now as the new addition of color presented a warmth to the room, he thought to the miracle that would be coming into his life and he found himself overwhelmed with a sense of pride and happiness as he’d realized that he’d finally made it full circle in his life. He was where he’d wanted to be with his dreams coming true, and yet as he thought to his brother’s obvious need to make misery out of Russell’s newfound happiness with Avery, a pain ate away at his insides as there was a time not so long ago when he and Grady could’ve made the most of such a moment--when there seemed like nothing could tear the Denton brothers apart.
“Grady, come on. I don’t want to be late for my own wedding,”
Russell called up the staircase impatiently awaiting his brother’s arrival
before he finally decided to take one last, long look at his own reflection
once again in the mirror. He fidgeted with his tie finding himself
overcome with a combination of nervousness and excitement as Grady casually
made his way down the stairs whistling a tune to himself.
“I’m right here,” Grady remarked with a chuckle turning his attention
to his younger brother, “You know if you’re late it’s not going to be a
problem as I’m sure Avery will be once again running behind schedule as
she’s notorious for being late.”
“On the contrary, Avery‘s only late when we have plans with you,” Russell
couldn‘t help but tease thinking about his brother’s strange effect on
his bride to be, “but other than that she’s always on time.”
“Yeah whatever,” Grady shrugged his shoulders not bothering to give
Russell‘s statement a second thought, “Given the nature of the day ahead
of you both, I don’t see her rushing to get it over with there as I’m sure
she’ll want to draw things out as long as possible since we both know how
she thrives on drama.”
“I don’t think that’s the case either,” Russell began to argue with
him, “as this is a very important day for us both.”
“Take my word on this,” Grady patted his shoulder gently, “she’s a
woman preparing for what has been drilled into her head to be the happiest
day of her life today. She’ll be late.”
“Even so, I need to be there on time as I don’t want to waste a minute
of this as a day like this one comes once in a lifetime,” Russell took
in a slow, uneven breath before turning around to face his brother, “So
how do I look?”
“Like you’re going to throw up,” Grady chortled in response stepping
in to help Russell with an adjustment on the tie he’d been wearing, “You
know it’s not too late to back out on this one. We can always skip
town, send dad in to break the news to Avery and then go to Cancun or something
and kick back for a few weeks enjoying the single life and freedom you
opted not to throw away with the whole chains of marriage that would come
after today.”
“No way,” Russell insisted firmly as he felt a lump forming in the back
of his throat, “I’ve waited my entire life for this and nothing is going
to keep me from being with her. This is really it. Today Avery
is going to become my wife at long last…”
“And to think that I saw her first,” Grady chuckled in mild amusement
scratching at his temple in reflection, “Avery was just this little nothing
when she got up in my face on that school yard telling me where I could
stick it for not letting her play baseball with the rest of us. She
thought she was really something there with that sharp tongue of hers and
I swear it took everything I had in me not to pick the kid up and toss
her half way across the playground, but you, well, you were smitten with
her from that moment when she dared to challenge my views on baseball.”
“That’s because I never saw anyone raise their voice against the almighty
Grady,” Russell laughed in response thinking back to the memory that his
brother had conjured up in him, “I mean there she was this little girl
in pigtails and a plaid skirt and she was telling my big brother that he
was wrong. To that day I’d never heard anyone say you were doing
something wrong as not even mom or dad uttered those words…”
“And rather than jumping up and taking my side, you offered to play
a game of baseball with her leaving me stranded and on my own,” Grady couldn’t
help but chuckle as he shook his head at his brother, “I should’ve known
she’d be trouble for us even back then.”
“Oh admit it, you like her,” Russell nudged his brother, “Even then
you thought she was something special.”
“I thought she was something, but I don’t know if I’d go as far as
calling it special,” Grady teased smoothing out the shoulders of his brother’s
tuxedo jacket, “but she makes you happy and that’s really all that matters
to me as I want this dream to be what you wanted it to be.”
“It will be,” Russell boasted excitedly, “and in having you with me
at my side as my best man, well I know that I can do this--that I can really
have the wedding I’ve always dreamt about with everyone that means the
most to me supporting Avery and I as we finally make things official.”
“I’d have to say you two did that while ago. Come to think of
it as soon as Avery got breasts, I think mom and dad should‘ve been aware
of the world of trouble you two were about to embark upon with one another.
Our parents still have no idea how many times you and Avery christened
that old beat up couch of ours in the basement there,” Grady teased further
throwing a playful punch in his brother’s direction.
“And you’re not about to start spilling the secrets about that either,”
Russell warned sharply, “as I’d like to refrain from Avery’s father killing
me on my first day as her husband there. We still have to maintain
some inkling of her virtue you know.”
“Hmm, well that’s about all that’s left of it too,” Grady snickered
as Russell threw him a glare.
“Grady I mean it,” Russell warned again.
“Okay, I’ll try to keep my silence there, but no promises as the best
man does have his speech there and those often take a life of their own,”
Grady chuckled further amused by the color the expression over Russell’s
features, “but hey, Russ, you know that I would never go out of my way
to upset the balance you’ve found in your life as it’s about time one of
us found it.”
“Well, I have to say I’ve had a good mentor there most of my life,”
Russell smiled in response, “as I’m very proud to say you’re my brother
and my best man today, Grady.”
“Hey, there’s no place I’d rather be,” Grady pulled him into an embrace,
“well, that’s not entirely true as they were having this wet t-shirt contest
down at Charlie’s later, but…”
“Grady, come on. Be serious,” Russell shook his head at him as
a groan spilled from his lips, “this is my wedding day.”
“In that case we don’t want you to be late to that church, now do we,”
Grady’s laughter filled the moment as Russell returned to the present time
finding himself in his child’s nursery holding one of the teddy bears his
parents had picked up for the baby.
Taking a seat in the rocking chair set up in front of the window, Russell
looked out into the yard seeing the first glimmer of the morning upon the
horizon and he found himself wondering if there would ever come a day when
he and Grady would see eye to eye ever again. Closing his eyes he
sank back into the chair, just feeling the slow movement of the chair’s
rocking motion as he held the soft, brown teddy bear in his arms thinking
about the previous evening’s chain of events leading to the blow out at
Grady’s place.
“Hey you,” Avery’s voice beckoned him from his thoughts as she entered
the room, tying the sash on her blue, fuzzy robe as she noticed the way
he seemed to be lost inside himself. She slowly approached him bringing
her arms in around his shoulders as she leaned in over the back of the
rocking chair holding him while she rested her head on top of his for a
brief moment.
“Hey beautiful,” he brought his hands up over hers offering a tender
squeeze as he tilted his head back to look up at her.
“I missed you when I realize you were gone,” Avery confessed tipping
forward on her toes to lean over the back of the chair and kiss him tenderly.
She touched his face gently as their lips parted and she whispered just
above him, “I thought that maybe you’d run off to the bathroom or to get
a drink, but when you didn’t return I got a little worried.”
“I guess you could say I had a lot on my mind last night and this morning,”
he sighed feeling her embrace as his finger tips traveled up over her arm,
“but I didn’t want to wake you.”
“You didn’t,” Avery circled around the chair before settling in on
his lap, “at least not in the ways your thinking as I just don’t seem to
sleep right without you beside me. I don’t know why, but ever since
you found your way back into my life again, I just can’t find it in me
to relax completely unless your arms are around me. Sounds crazy,
doesn’t it?”
“Not at all,” he admitted honestly touching her cheek as he gazed into
her dark eyes, “as I often find myself in that same very position.”
“Hmm, then we certainly have a situation on our hands, don’t we Mr.
Denton,” Avery threw out a teasing smile as his arm curled around her more
securely.
“That we do Mrs. Denton,” he leaned forward to kiss her gently before
sinking back into the chair as he silently offered her the teddy bear in
exchange for the chance to bring her further into his lap.
“I think we’ve got more than one quandary on our hands here,” Avery
reached for his other hand bringing it into her lap as she circled her
finger over the top of his palm, “as last night I know you didn’t want
to talk about things, but maybe we should.”
“I just wanted to go to bed,” Russell sighed gazing out over the yard
as Avery’s hand pressed over his chest.
“Yeah, but baby I know you weren’t sleeping as I could feel you tossing
and turning all night after we came home,” she confessed searching his
features as she nestled in against him, “Russ, you don’t have to pretend
that this situation isn’t hurting you because I know better than that.”
“I just don’t understand why Grady can’t just let this go. I
mean honestly, why can’t he just see how happy we are together,” he frowned
turning his attention to her once again, “I mean once upon a time we all
got along pretty decent, didn’t we?”
“Well Grady always had his tiffs, but there was a time when things
weren’t this bad,” Avery agreed snuggling in against him as she pulled
her legs up a bit over the arm on the chair. She settled more completely
into his lap as his arms kept her close to him, “but then again if you
really think about this, it’s not really his fault because he’s trying
to be a good brother.”
“A good brother wouldn’t be so hell bent on refusing to accept you
in my life,” Russell pointed out with a puff of frustration, “He’d just
see how happy you make me and that would be the end of it.”
“Russ, as much as I’d like to see that happen, Grady isn’t going to
change his ways,” she explained with a frown of her own, “He sees me as
the woman who broke your heart and even now he’s never going to see me
as anything, but that bitch who nearly destroyed you.”
“But you aren’t those things Avery,” Russell argued with her, “You’re
the most wonderful, amazing woman and if Grady would just open his eyes…”
“Russ, he saw what happened on our wedding day and he saw you nearly
go to jail because of what happened with Bruce, so in his own way he’s
thinking like someone who wants to keep you out of harm’s way,” Avery insisted
thinking about the situation that they’d found themselves in with his brother,
“In his own way, he sees me as the thing that’s taken you down time and
time again and feels he’s right in doing things the way he does.”
“But he’s not right and for you to sit here and try to defend the guy,
well Avery I have to say that I’m surprised,” he offered up with a slump
of his shoulders, “After the way he’s treated you…”
“Given what he thinks I put you through I’m surprised he hasn’t tried
to burn me at the stake,” she replied with an ill-fated attempt at humor
as she noticed the sadness that pooled behind his eyes, “Russ, baby, you
can’t expect him to change over night.”
“No, I can’t, but I didn’t expect him to do what he did to you last
night Avery,” he reminded her as traces of his buried emotions crept over
the lines of his face bringing forth a mask of sadness an ache up inside
of her, “We have so much ahead of us and I hate the thought of Grady being
one of the things that stand in our way when it comes to happiness.”
“He only stands in the way if we let him,” Avery stated simply as she
reached out to take his hand in hers once again, “and we won’t do that
as long as we can help it.”
“It’s easier said than done as I can already feel the effects of what
last night’s disaster had on us,” he remarked offhandedly as he turned
his attention to the window once again.
“What’s that supposed to mean,” she questioned in confusion seeing
another rush of sadness flood over him, “Russ, what’s going on?”
“I just…I mean last night I really thought that maybe just maybe Grady
would tow the line and do what he promised,” he explained keeping his eyes
on the window as he spoke in a low, shameful tone, “I really believed him
when he said that things weren’t going to get out of hand, but then boom,
here we are back at square one when I should’ve seen it…when I should’ve
protected you from all of that…”
“Russ, I could hold my own against Grady,” Avery reached out to him
urging him to face her once again, “You know as well as I do that he can’t
hurt me unless he’s hurting you and that’s where my concern comes from.
He can call me anything he wants until he’s blue in the face, but while
it might temporarily shake me up, it’s you that I care about. I love
you Russ and I hate to see you tearing yourself apart over this ridiculous
hatred that Grady has for me.”
“He shouldn’t be doing it,” Russell argued with her raising his voice
with the moment, “as we both know that despite whatever twisted reasoning
he has, it’s just wrong.”
“Wrong or not, it’s just how Grady works and maybe one day he’ll come
around. Then again maybe he’ll never come around, but right now we
need to focus on what we have here. I want you to be happy with the
life we have Russ and if you’re having any kind of second thoughts about
being with me after what it’s done to your relationship with your brother…”
“You’ve got to be kidding me, right,” he eyed her incredulously as
he noticed the way her eyes seemed to reach out to him as if to find some
deep seeded reasoning behind his mood other than Grady’s behavior, “Avery,
I could never have second thoughts about you or us as this is everything
I wanted. You’re the dream that’s filled me up inside for so very
long and now that it’s become a reality…”
“Russ, I just think of the cost you’re paying for this piece of happiness,”
Avery sighed as a tiny flicker of sadness pressed over her, “I just don’t
want you lose something that means so very much to you because of me…”
“I’m not losing anything because if Grady truly cared about my well
being, then he wouldn’t have spent so much time making you miserable and
trying to work against us,” he decided realizing that his stewing over
Grady’s actions was counterproductive as he held his beautiful wife in
his arms. “In fact, come here baby…”
“Where,” she questioned feeling him reposition her on his lap as his
lips sought out hers for a tender kiss.
“Right here,” he murmured his breath buzzing over her lips as he held
her, “Here I am promising you the world and a life full of happiness along
with the fairy tale marriage and yet you’re the one here trying to pull
me out of this slump I’m in.”
“That’s what I’m here for,” Avery offered a tender smile curling her
arms around his shoulders as she kept her eyes fixed upon the flecks of
amber burning behind his green eyes, “as in being your wife I do have a
certain sense of responsibility lined up here you know. The princess
can take care of her prince after all you know.”
“I don’t want you to feel obligated to have to put up with my whining
as it’s really not necessary when I have the world in front of me with
you,” Russell whispered reaching out to touch her face in a soft, barely
there caress.
“Well, yeah that is something for you to think about as you know you’ve
got the world right before you baby,” Avery teased with a wink before leaning
in to kiss him once again, “but in the same respect it’s okay to vent your
troubles to me every now and then as that’s what being best friends is
all about.”
“Sometimes I guess you can say that I just try to keep some of this
stuff that’s running through my mind from being a burden to you as I know
we’ve had our fair share of situations to deal with lately,” Russell confessed
thinking about all they’d been through in their short time as husband and
wife already.
“Honey, you are anything, but a burden in my life. Just knowing
that you trust me enough to be candid with me is something special in itself
and besides in being able to open up to me about what’s going on inside
your head, well it just reminds me of all the reasons why I love you,”
she tried to assure him, “I mean hey this is something that I think qualifies
as another reason as to why we’re meant for one another.”
“Because I like to complain?” he gave her a strange look.
“No, because I know how hard it is for you to admit when something
is bothering you, yet you’re opening your heart and thoughts to me at a
time when you’d just as soon shut yourself off from the world around you,”
she explained as a sad smile swept over her beautiful features, “That in
itself tells me how much you truly love me.”
“I do love you Avery,” he declared dropping his hands down over her
waist before his fingers darted in over her abdomen, “I love everything
about how right we are.”
“We have a lot ahead of us Russ and I know that together we can find
a way to survive anything that comes our way,” she breathed feeling a soft
rush of hope expand inside of her at the way his hand pressed upon her
body. Feeling a strong connection to him in such a moment, she slipped
her fingers over his, just content to be close to him as they held one
another in their child’s nursery.
“You’re right,” he agreed feeling her snuggle into him once again,
“we can make it through whatever the winding road of life has ahead of
us.”
“There’s the spirit,” Avery encouraged him feeling a smile of her own
spread over her face as she held his hand in hers, lacing their fingers
together, “I mean look how long it took us to get what we both wanted in
our lives, but now that we have it, well baby think about how good it was
in that moment when this became a reality.”
“It was incredible,” he conceded with a proud smile as his green eyes
fell upon her taking the time to memorize her beautiful features, “and
it still is.”
“I know,” she tilted her head up towards him, her smile widening as
the warmth of his body offered up a feeling of safety and security from
within, “and I have no doubt in my mind that it’s only going to get better
as time goes on.”
“Sounds like you have a lot of faith these days,” Russell noted with
a warmth in his tone.
“I guess you could say I had the right person in my life to teach me
to believe in miracles again,” she reached out to him touching his cheek
gliding her fingers over his jaw line, “I love you.”
“I love you too Avery,” he bent down to kiss her tenderly, the powerful
emotions in his heart falling from his lips as he held her, “I always have
you know.”
“And I know that you always will,” she smiled as they parted, “which
is why I have no doubt in my mind that things are going to have a positive
spin for us with our families sooner or later.”
“I sure hope so,” he admitted keeping her close to him. He began
to rock the chair a bit in their moment of silence as he thought of all
the things they had to look forward to in the future with one another and
as visions of them together with their baby danced through his mind, he
turned his attention to her abdomen once again.
“It’ll happen one day,” Avery tried to assure him once again noting
the expression on his face as she gave him a sideways glance, “Okay, what’s
on your mind right now?”
He shrugged his shoulders before answering, “You, us,” his hand massaged
over her abdomen, “the baby.”
“The baby,” Avery repeated feeling the way he’d touched her, “you know
that’s a pretty important topic that we need to start thinking about here.”
“That it is as we have a lot of planning ahead of us,” Russell agreed
with a nod motioning to the room around them, “I mean my parents helped
us out with the nursery design, but that’s only one part of what we need
to look into as we have so many things to plan for such as thinking about
maybe taking some classes to help us prepare for the day our little one
comes into the when, picking out a name and…”
“A name,” Avery repeated as the reality of the moment hung over her,
“Russ, do you have any idea how much thought will have to go into that?”
“I might have a bit of an idea,” he teased rubbing his hand over her
once again, “but I’m sure together we can come up with something incredible
that fits our child as we seem to come up with nothing short of perfection
when we’re working with one another.”
“So I’ve noticed,” Avery smiled up at him, “though I have to admit
that when we conceived this baby, we weren’t exactly working together like
we are now…”
“Yes we were,” he couldn’t help but laugh as he took note of the sparkle
behind her eyes, “but you were just too stubborn to admit to it at the
time.”
“What a fool I must‘ve been,” she teased back at him as he urged her
to sit up straighter as his lips grew nearer to hers.
“Ah yes, but we won’t dwell on that as I’ve clearly broken you of that
habit time and time again,” he assured her teasing his lips over hers.
“Hmm…so it would seem,” Avery agreed throwing her arms around his neck
as their kisses continued, “as I know now in being this close to you I’ll
never be a fool again.”
“Good thinking,” Russell murmured nibbling upon her lower lip in a
lingering kiss before parting from her, “How is it I got to be this lucky
to have you in my life?”
“I tend to think I’m the lucky one here as I’m married to the most
amazing man,” Avery whispered dropping kisses in over his neck as he held
her.
“What did I do to deserve you,” he questioned lazily his hands sliding
up over her spine as she placed tender kisses upon his skin.
“Well for starters you have the most incredible sense of patience as
not many men would put up with me,” she breathed in his ear, “and you’ve
also got the most beautiful heart of anyone I’ve known,” she pulled back
to gaze into his eyes as he held her and a seriousness spread over her
features before she continued, “and beyond that you have got the cutest
butt I’ve ever laid my eyes or rather my hands upon.”
“Ah, so now we get to the heart of the matter,” he couldn’t help but
smile watching her break out into a round of giggles, “you married me because
you thought I was the guy with the nice behind, huh?”
“Well, there’s just something about it that well, when we’re making
love, I just get this urge to reach out and touch it, but then again there
are other parts of you that are equally delicious, so maybe that statement
I made before was a little off considering that…” Avery continued playfully
until he cut her off with a kiss.
“You’re adorable,” he couldn’t help but laugh as he curled his arms
around her, “I mean here we are having a serious moment and then all of
a sudden, you find all the right ways to make me smile and turn me on all
in an instant when ten minutes ago the last thing on my mind was enjoying
myself.”
“See, now that’s where you and I sometimes have a sense of conflict
between us,” Avery plucked open a couple of buttons on his pajama top,
“as you often take things so seriously that stress just weighs you down
and it’s then when it’s my turn to make light of the moment and get you
back on the right track.”
“Hmm, well if that track involves us getting back to those handcuffs
that I tucked away last night after dinner because of my sour mood, then
I’m game here,” Russell winked at her as she shook her head at him, her
dark hair framing her face with the movement.
“You’re incorrigible,” she couldn’t help but laugh at the twinkle behind
his green eyes as his hands dropped down over her hips.
“And you’re insatiable,” he nipped at her earlobe placing moist, heated
kisses upon her skin as he continued to whisper, “as you like to tease
me about being the one who can’t get enough of you, but you’re just as
hot for me as I am for you.”
“You think so, huh,” Avery questioned feeling his fingers fan out over
the curve of her hip, sliding up and down over the fabric of her robe before
a moment of stillness passed between them and he sat upright, a sheer look
of mischief crossing over his handsome features.
“I know so,” he replied fishing out what she’d been carrying in her
pocket as the handcuffs he’d mentioned dangled in his hand.
“Now where ever did you find those,” Avery feigned innocence unable
to contain the smile that was tugging at the corners of her lips.
“Hmm, I wonder,” Russell curled his arm around her kissing her boldly,
“and here I thought you just came in here to cheer me up.”
“That’s exactly what I was doing coming here,” she started to argue.
“With no ulterior motives,” he arched a skeptical brow.
“None at all,” she shook her head as he dangled the handcuffs in front
of her once again and she raised her hand to her chest still proclaiming
her innocence, “as I have no idea how those got into my pocket.”
“Hmm, well in that case, I suppose we shouldn’t dwell on it because
I know where they‘re going to be going soon enough,” he swiftly rose from
the chair throwing her over his shoulder with a sudden movement, “as I
think it’s time for me to take matters into my own hands until I get a
confession out of you here.”
“Russ,” she wiggled her legs out wildly as he carried her out of the
nursery with devilish intent, “where are we going?”
“To get the truth out of you by whatever means necessary,” he confessed
kicking open their bedroom door with an overzealous movement causing the
door to slam into the wall.
“Russ, careful,” Avery insisted feeling him rush over to the bed.
“I’m working on it,” he blurted out dropping her down on the blankets
and moving in over her all in the blink of an eye as she felt his hands
seeking out hers drawing her arms up over her head closer to the headboard
as Avery caught a glimpse of the handcuffs flashing past her pillow.
“Russ, I thought we agreed that when we got to those that I’d be the
one who…” she started to protest feeling him cut her off with a kiss as
she felt the sharp snap of the padded metal cuffs over her wrist followed
by his hand urging the other wrist into submission.
“Given that this morning is about cheering me up for a while, I thought
we’d improvise,” he explained dropping his lips down to claim hers in a
heated kiss before his fingers teased over her robe tie, unknotting the
sash as she wiggled beneath him in mock protest.
“Russ, last night you said that you wanted to work on the fantasy I’d
had all those years ago. I mean I‘d just as soon imagined that you‘d
be the one that…,” she insisted boldly with her eyes following his every
movement. He began to part the front of her robe to reveal the absence
of her nightgown as his eyes sparked with the obvious flames of desire.
“Sure you did,” he grinned knowingly as his lips dropped down over
her body wanting to explore this fun, frisky side of his wife after his
morning of moping over Grady, but just when the moment seemed to be getting
good between them, he heard the phone on the nightstand ringing.
“Russ,” Avery squirmed beneath him, feeling the wickedness of his tongue
teasing over her, “maybe…”
“No maybes,” he shook his head propping himself up over her while reaching
for the phone and ripping it from the wall before tossing it to the floor.
He moved up onto his knees feasting upon her with his eyes, rubbing his
palms together as he licked his lips, “ah yes, where to begin…”
“Russ, I don’t know if you should’ve done that considering,” Avery’s
words came to a screeching halt as he’d finally settled in on where he’d
wanted to be with his exploration of her body and suddenly all that seemed
to matter was his touch, his teasing as she writhed beneath him.
“Very nice,” Russell murmured over her heated skin feeling her arch
up against him in protest.
“Russ, come on. Take these things off of me,” she pleaded with
him, “I thought we’d agreed that…”
“I’m rather enjoying myself here Avery,” he whispered dropping kisses
over her shapely calf, over the ticklish spot near her knee, leisurely
skimming his lips over her thigh as a shiver raced over her.
“Russ,” she blurted out his name curling her other leg over his shoulder
in an attempt to gain some control of the situation they’d found themselves
in as she was burning to touch him.
“Patience sweetheart,” he breathed dipping his lips out over thigh
as the nearness of her turned him into a man on a mission as his thumb
and index fingers slid up over her thigh in an L-shape reveling in the
tiny shudders that raced through her as his lips followed suit.
“Russell,” she began again impatiently trying to sound firm as her
words came out as more of a soft moan as his lips and tongue created a
wicked diversion to her protests.
“Patience,” he repeated his mantra once again ready to delve into pleasing
his wife as yet another loud, obtrusive sound ripped through the moment
causing Avery to buck up against him in surprise with a squeal.
“Russ, that’s my cell phone,” she groaned turning her head in the direction
of the sound.
“And that matters because?” he questioned lazily determination filling
his tone as he teased his lips over yet another one of her secret hotspots.
“Russ, I…oh…oh Russ…” she whimpered his name dropping her head back
into the pillow giving herself completely to him as her phone fell to silence
replaced by the screams he was ripping from inside of her with his persuasive
talents. However, midway through the explosions, Avery found herself
being brought back from the heavens as another boisterous, frantic sound
poured through the walls of the bedroom causing Avery to jolt with a start.
“Russ,” she began breathlessly her eyes falling upon him as his head
tipped up towards her, “what the hell is that?”
“My phone,” he confessed sheepishly, “I was playing with ring tones
the other day and that one kind of just had a catchiness to it.”
“Bonanza?” Avery gave him a strange look as the squealing of his phone
continued to sever the moment between them.
“Well, it seemed cute enough at the time,” he offered with a simple
shrug of his shoulders.
“I’m sure,” she rolled her eyes before motioning towards the source
of the sound, “though something tells me that whomever keeps calling us,
isn’t going to give up anytime soon, so why not just answer the phone?”
“I can give you multiple reasons why I don’t really want to answer
the phone,” his gaze lingered over her body as his fingers teased over
her once again.
“Uh Russ,” Avery curled up against him unable to contain the movement,
“if you don’t answer the phone I’m going to feel like we’ve just stepped
into a really bad sitcom moment here and I’m just telling you now that
I’m not going to spend the morning making love to that song.”
“Fine, then I’ll just turn it off,” he reluctantly tore himself away
from her seeking out his phone as he prepared to turn the power off, but
as his eyes fell upon the number before him, a curse fell from his lips,
“Damn, it’s your father.”
“Then answer it,” Avery tried to get up from the bed, thinking to the
cuffs she was in as a frustrated groan spilled from her lips, “Russ, come
on. I need to let him know I won’t be coming in this morning…”
“I really don’t think that now is the time for us to get into a lengthy
conversation with your father considering that just a few minutes ago I
was…” Russell started to argue with her as Avery used her toes to kick
a pillow out at him as her impatience overtook her.
“Answer it now, Russ,” Avery hissed at him, irritation flashing behind
her eyes.
“Oh alright,” Russell felt a crooked smile spreading over his features
at the sight of her all hot and bothered before him. Combining that with
her immense agitation, he thought of all the ways he’d use it to his advantage
once her father was off the phone. Unable to mask the laughter in
his tone, he answered his cell phone brightly, “Good morning Richard.”
“I’m so going to kill you when I get out of these,” Avery groaned turning
her attention to her wrists as she wondered why in the world she’d even
bothered to let Russell take charge of this particular playtime between
them, but as the memory of his lips haunted her, she felt a flash of desire
rush down to the tips of her toes.
“I see,” Russell spoke into the phone, a seriousness taking over his
tone as he turned away from her, “yes…of course…Absolutely. We’ll
be right there. Thank you for calling,” he hung up the phone before
turning to face Avery, a seriousness in his features.
“Well, what did he want? Did you tell him I‘m not coming in this
morning,” she questioned impatiently as her eyes drifted up to see the
expression on his face. He moved in beside her, pulling the key to
the handcuffs off of the nightstand to release her in that moment of silence
he’d carried with him after the phone call, “Russ, what’s going on?
What did my father say?”
“Avery that wasn’t your father,” Russell began taking in a slow breath
as he reached for her hand cupping it in his, “It was Judy.”
“Is something wrong,” panic flashed behind her eyes as she sat upright,
“Did something happen to my father?”
“No,” he shook his head somberly, “he’s alright, well as alright as
he can be at a time like this as apparently there was an accident last
night…”
“What kind of accident,” she questioned pulling her robe around her
body as she noticed the way he was looking at her, “Russ, come on.
Out with it. What happened?”
“Avery, they pulled Brooke’s car out of Lake Cardinal this morning.
The details are sketchy, but from what Judy’s explained your father’s upset
and…”
“Oh God,” Avery gasped in horror as his words settled in, “is he okay?”
“He wasn’t with Brooke at the time, but they think that she might’ve
been in the car at the time when it wound up in the water, but as of this
moment they haven’t found her body…”
“Russ, are you saying that my mother is…” Avery’s jaw dropped as a
shock and sense of horror flooded over her at the thought of what he could
be telling her, but before she could take the time to register her feelings
about the situation, she leapt out of bed quickly seeking out some clothing,
“Where’s my father?”
“He’s down at the scene, but Judy said that the police asked him downtown
to go through a few of Brooke’s things that they found,” Russell watched
her shuffling through the various things she’d brought with her to the
house to wear.
“My father must be really shaken if he had Judy call, which can only
mean he’s hurting right now and Guy,” Avery paused as she pulled a random
blouse out of the closet struggling to button it as her fingers were shaking
with the movement, “Oh God, if something’s happened to Brooke, then he’s
going to be…” she stopped the thought, “I need to see him…I need to be
there for both daddy and Guy because right now…well, right now things will
need to be done and…” she trailed off unable to contain the relentless
tears that forced their way to the surface as Russell approached her bringing
his hand upon her shoulder.
“Hey,” he spoke up gently urging her to look at him as her tears pooled
in her eyes, “sweetheart…”
“Russ, if she’s gone, then there’s no telling what will happen to my
brother as he depends on her for so very much and she’s the world to him.
I mean sure she and I didn’t get along as she could really be heartless
at times, but now…” she felt herself overcome with a mixture of emotions
as Russell instinctively reached out to her pulling her into his arms as
her tears overcame her.
“I know sweetheart,” he spoke soothingly as she continued to sob into
his chest releasing the buried emotions and mixed feelings that she’d felt
about her mother over the years as the thought of her mother’s absence
seemed to shake her up more than either one of them could ever imagine.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Gabe poured a glass of orange juice before taking a section of the newspaper from the pile upon the table and sitting down nearby. He began reading over the local news as Guy stepped in from the living room.
“Morning,” Gabe spoke as he saw his lover looking less than ready to face the day, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing really,” Guy yawned as he poured himself a cup of coffee, “I didn’t sleep well last night.”
“I noticed,” Gabe nodded as he put the newspaper aside, “What’s bothering you?”
“Nothing I can put my finger on. I’ve been just kind of at loose ends since last evening,” Guy shrugged before he sat down near Gabe, “I guess it’s just a case of senseless anxiety. I don’t have any real explanation for it. I just feel like something wrong…somewhere…with someone.”
“With all the stress in your life right now, I can see why you’d be full of anxiety,” Gabe reached out to take Guy’s hand, “But everything’s going to be just fine in the long run.”
“I wish I had your confidence,” Guy rubbed his neck with his free hand as his cell phone began to ring. He moved into the living room and read over the number on his caller id, “Great, it’s my father. Like I really want to talk to him this morning.”
“Then don’t answer it,” Gabe offered as he sat on the sofa and switched on the television, “You can just tell him later that you weren’t getting good service, or you had a dead battery,” He shrugged as he changed the channel to a local news broadcast.
“I knew I loved you for a reason,” Guy smiled as he tossed his phone back into a recliner before joining Gabe on the sofa.
“Of course you do,” Gabe teased before drawing Guy into a quick kiss, “What are your plans for the day?”
“I have a few items to look over in this deal Mom’s trying to work out with Marc Ashley.”
“Marc Ashley?” Gabe repeated the name in surprise.
“Yes, you remember the other day when I mentioned that I’ll need to attend a party on a yacht. That very yacht belongs to Marc Ashley,” Guy explained, “Why? Do you know him?”
“I…I might,” Gabe spoke vaguely, “There are many Ashleys in Europe, and I might have run into him along the way.”
“I suppose,” Guy froze as he watched the television, “Turn it up. Hurry!”
Gabe turned the volume up on the television as a reporter spoke.
“Details are sketchy at this hour, but the Coral Valley police department are on the scene at Lake Cardinal where it appears that a car belonging to Brooke Morrison has gone into the water. Divers are in the water as we speak while police search the banks for any explanation of what might have happened here. Cody, back to you in the studio,” The reporter explained hastily.
“No,” Guy stood immediately and grabbed his jacket, “No…this can’t be happening. That has to be wrong. It has to be. If that was my mother, someone would have called me.”
“Maybe that’s what your father was calling about,” Gabe suggested as he rose to his feet, “I’m going with you.”
“No,” Guy shook his head, “I…I’ll go alone.”
“No, you won’t. You’re in no shape to drive right now, and I’ll not lose you because you didn’t want me to accompany you to the lake. I’m going with you.”
“How could this happen? My mother is a attentive driver. She wouldn’t have just lost control…” Guy attempted to reason even as tears filled his eyes.
“We’ll get the answers you need, Guy, and we’ll get them together,” Gabe assured him, “Come on. Let’s get you down there.”
Guy nodded as he followed his lover out of the apartment. While he’d kept his life a secret from his mother, he’d wanted nothing more than for her to be proud of him. If she were gone…no. She couldn’t be gone. She was the incomparable Brooke Morrison, and no one would ever be able to take her down…not without one hell of a fight on their hands.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The piercing buzz of Brant’s alarm screeched through his bedroom bringing
him out of one of the most delicious dreams of Avery that he’d had to this
day. The two of them had been on the beach, on that little exotic
spot on the island he’d wanted to take her two and as they’d spent their
time exploring one another. It was certainly proving to be an eventful
experience until it dawned in on him that the woman he was with was the
same woman he’d spent that brief encounter with on the island as Angela
was the woman in his arms, the warm body melting beneath his touch and
just as he was about to put all the pieces of the puzzle together as to
how Avery had become Angela, the damned alarm awakened him to the big,
all too empty bed he’d fallen asleep in the night before at the mansion
once again much to his dismay. Now as he sat upright rubbing his
head as a groan spilled over his lips, he realized this was going to be
a long morning indeed as life was most certainly not going the way he’d
hoped for.
“Well there’s always another fun filled day at work,” he grumbled to
himself dreading the return to the company, but in that moment the thought
of Avery swept over him and his grouchiness evaporated as he sprung to
life racing to the shower eager to spend the day at the office if it meant
being closer to Avery yet again.
Whistling a bright and cheerful tune to himself, Brant turned the water
on stepping into his shower as the hope for things to come flooded over
him. He began to clean up imagining what cute and quirky way he’d
capture Avery’s attention today when he had a sudden flash back to the
time he and Angela had shared with one another back on the island in her
shower. Suddenly a whole new set of sensations whipped through him
as he pushed himself underneath the water trying to banish how incredible
that experience had been as he tried to stay focused on what he’d had planned
for Avery. Granted Angela was sensational, but given that she’d tossed
him on his butt and Avery was what he’d truly wanted, he couldn’t help
but want to kick himself for even allowing that time to even figure into
his current state of mind.
Now as Brant finished up with his shower, he decided he’d make a quick
run to the kitchen for a bite to eat and then head on over to work to begin
the next phase in his plan to charm Avery as it was most certainly a matter
of time before she was in his arms. Jogging down the stairs as determination
electrified his senses, he felt the same old self confidence that defined
him all these years coming to the surface as no woman was immune to his
charms and soon Avery would be his in every sense of the word. Whistling
a tune once again, he headed towards the kitchen when the sounds of Blake’s
laughter filled the hallway.
“Well, it’s about time,” Brant thought to himself rounding the corner
of the doorway only to discover Blake in the arms of Seth Alexander.
Watching as the two of them were engaged in some kind of cooking disaster,
Brant couldn’t help but notice the way Blake’s eyes lit up as she sought
out the pancake turner from Seth’s hands.
“Seth, you’re doing it all wrong,” Blake teased guiding his hand towards
the pan, “if you don’t take the time to flip them right now, they’re going
to burn.”
“Blake, I’m telling you that I’ve done it this way for years and…”
Seth started to argue as the distinct odor of charred batter filled the
kitchen.
“Ha, I told you so,” she lifted the pan off of the stove dumping it
into the sink as a cloud of smoke followed the trashed pancake.
“Blake, I’m telling you now that I’ve never had a problem with making
pancakes before now,” he leaned up against the counter watching her scratch
the sticky batter off of the pan, “I’ve not burned a one.”
“Well you just did, now didn’t you,” she stuck her tongue out at him
dropping the pan down into the sink with a thud as she shook her head with
a tiny laugh, “though you know maybe this is a sign that we’re missing
the boat here in attempting to make pancakes.”
“But I thought you wanted pancakes,” Seth lifted a curious brow watching
her shuffle around the kitchen.
“Well I did, but now,” she bent down to reach into one of the cabinets
pulling out a waffle maker she knew would be inside, “I want waffles.”
“Waffles,” Seth repeated with a hearty laugh as she shuffled the waffle
maker in her arms before he reached out to take it from her, “and here
you said that I was the impossible one when it came to deciding what I
wanted for breakfast.”
“No I said you were the impossible one when it came to making breakfast,”
Blake corrected with a grin, “as you were insisting that we do things your
way when mine is obviously the better way of doing them…”
“So you keep saying,” Seth laughed lightly curling his arm around her
as he pulled her in towards the place on the counter where he’d set up
the waffle maker, “though what do you say this time you show me how you
want it done and that way you can’t blame disaster on me.”
“Well, I suppose I can do that, but just this once,” Blake decided
with a giggle sliding in between him and the counter as his arms wrapped
around her waist and she motioned to the waffle maker and the bowl of batter
before her, “now pay attention here as there’s going to be a quiz on this
after we’re finished with this.”
“Is that right,” Seth questioned lazily watching her scoop some batter
onto the waffle maker before he leaned down to place a quick kiss on the
back of her neck.
Blake tipped back into his touch as she closed her eyes savoring the
feel of his lips over her skin as a smile pressed over her features, “My
you are a quick learner, aren’t you Seth?”
“I’m trying to be,” Seth whispered nibbling on her earlobe teasingly
as the sound of footsteps entered the kitchen followed by the clearing
of Brant’s throat.
“So what are we up to this morning,” Brant interrupted blandly his
eyes drifting over to Seth with heavy scrutiny as he stood taller facing
Blake’s latest companion. “I didn’t realize you had company, Blake.”
“Oh Brant,” Blake quickly shuffled out of Seth’s arms feeling him tense
up beside her before she reached out to embrace her brother, “I didn’t
realize you were still here. Up for waffles?”
“Actually I was just on my way out to the office,” he confessed hugging
her closer to him as his gaze never strayed from Seth, “but then I heard
you in here laughing…”
“That’s because Seth here doesn’t know the first thing about cooking,”
Blake waved her hand at him before wrinkling her nose, “He was so convinced
he was the pancake king, but he managed to burn every pancake we tried
making.”
“I never said I was the king,” Seth interjected before growing silent
once again as he and Brant exchanged glances with one another before Seth
looked away from him.
“Hmm, well it sounds like you’re at least enjoying yourself which is
always a good thing,” Brant kissed the top of her head, “though don’t make
too much of a mess in here as I’m sure Annie will have your head for that
if you do.”
“We’ll clean up after ourselves, though you know as I said before the
offer is always open for a waffle Brant as we’re just about finished with
the first one,” Blake insisted as another whiff of smoke filled the kitchen
and she turned her eyes to the waffle maker in horror watching as it seemed
that the waffle in the making had been singed as well. “Oh no!”
“Blake, it’s okay,” Brant couldn’t help but laugh watching her struggling
to get the burning waffle out of the maker as she waved her arms in the
air wildly to keep the smoke from filling the kitchen.
“Normally you know I cook so much better than this,” Blake began in
a frenzy.
“I know you do little sister,” Brant approached her helping her clean
up the new mess in front of her before he touched her shoulder gently,
“as you’re one of the best.”
“Well you know this, but Seth still hasn’t seen my culinary talents
at their finest,” Blake explained bringing her fingers through her hair
quickly.
“I’m sure he will if he treats you right,” Brant offered up in a cryptic
tone turning his attention to the man behind Blake.
“I have every intention of doing just that,” Seth answered tightly
as he stood beside the remaining batter.
“Good because I’d hate to think of someone trying to hurt my sister
again,” Brant reminded him pointedly before giving Blake a quick kiss on
the top of the head.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Seth offered up watching the exchange between
Blake and Brant as a silence swept over him.
“See you later princess,” Brant stepped back smiling at her once more
before tapping at her cheek, “I still think you’re a wonderful chef.”
“Thanks Brant,” she smiled back at him watching him leave before turning
her attention to Seth once again. She noticed the quietness that
had fallen over him after Brant’s arrival and as she stepped in towards
him, she placed her arms around his waist in an impromptu hug. “Earth
to Seth.”
“Sorry,” he began shaking the daze that he’d been in as he looked down
at her.
“You looked about a million miles away just now,” Blake offered up
thinking about the drastic change in him as Brant had been in the room.
“I was just thinking about your brother,” he admitted honestly as something
passed behind his eyes and he reached out to touch her face gently, “He
sure thinks the world of you, doesn’t he?”
“We think the world of each other as Brant’s a good guy. I mean
sure he’s got this thing about him where he tries to act tough, but deep
down when you get to the heart of him, he’s really an amazing guy,” Blake
answered proudly thinking about her older brother, “He tries to protect
me and sometimes it seems like a bit much…”
“No, not at all,” Seth shook his head upon her words, “as it’s a brother’s
place to do everything in his power to protect his sister and I can’t say
I blame him for thinking the worst about me after our falling out…”
“Yeah well I didn’t exactly talk to him about all that…” Blake took
a step back out of his arms, “as I’d really rather not think about that
considering that we’re having a nice morning making waffles together…”
“So you never talked to Brant about what happened between us then?”
he pushed a bit further wondering if Brant would be honest with Blake about
his father’s nefarious acts, but before he allowed himself to wedge his
foot in his mouth, he opted to drop the topic for just a bit longer as
he wanted to savor these few minutes he had with Blake before the real
world crashed in upon them once again.
“Seth…” she started an obvious apprehension behind her eyes as she
leaned back against the counter top.
“Forget I said anything,” Seth urge motioning towards the waffle maker,
“In fact, how about I give this ago and we can see if my luck is any better
now after our first two disasters?”
“Yeah sure,” Blake agreed watching him take charge of the waffle maker
as her thoughts lingered back to the very thing that had torn her and Seth
apart to begin with. Now as she reflected on the exchange between
Brant and Seth, she wondered if perhaps there was more to the story than
she’d wanted to admit between them. Granted she was in no way ready
to accept the fact that her father was a rapist, but maybe just maybe there
was some kind of confusion on Seth’s end that Brant could clear up.
After all it was possible that Seth had gotten the story all wrong and
then perhaps they both could find out the real answers, though that would
require going to Brant with Seth’s outrageous story and that in itself
sent a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.
“Blake, would you care to see the master in action,” Seth winked at
her breaking her free of her thoughts.
“I still think you’re going to burn them as well,” she offered up painting
on a smile and walked over to help him with the waffles vowing that she’d
talk to Brant another day, but for now she was just going to live in the
moment not dwelling on what was going wrong when right now she wanted to
focus on the little things that were going right.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Grady, let go,” Jade said firmly as she stepped out of his embrace. While she had no doubt that he believed the words he’d spoken, she couldn’t find it in herself to believe in them as well, “I don’t know if I can do this,” She whispered to herself as she kept her back turned to him.
“Jade, you can’t give up on me. I’m trying so hard to turn my life around,” Grady defended himself as he rose to his feet and took a step towards her, “You’re the reason for that. You’ve shown me what love really is, and I want to show you that I’m worthy of your attentions.”
She turned to face him and felt her heart breaking within her chest, “I’ve shown you what love really is? Then why is it that I feel like you don’t have the first clue about love? You have pushed your own brother away because he had the opportunity to seize the love he’d always wanted and live out a dream. You’ve turned your back on him.”
“I never turned my back on Russ,” He declared firmly.
“You might as well have. You’ve made it painfully obvious to everyone that you hate his wife. Do you have any idea what that must have felt like to Russell? I can’t imagine a more hurtful thing to do,” She shook her head, “Grady, I don’t want this to be about Avery when the truth is that this is about you.”
“How exactly is this about me?” He asked, “I spoke my mind, and that makes me the bad guy?”
“It does when you choose to do it amidst an air of friendship and loving. You said you were going to try to keep an open mind, but you weren’t thinking that way at all. All you did was take the opportunity to attack Avery. Is it going to be the same way with your drinking?” She asked as she watched him, “If you can’t keep your word with the little things, how do you expect me to believe it when it comes to the big ones?”
“This has nothing to do with my drinking,” He declared firmly.
“No, it has to do with your word, Grady. Right now, it doesn’t mean a whole lot. You gave me your word you would do your best to behave last night, but you didn’t. And you have me your word that you weren’t going to drink. Is that a lie too? Should I just give up now and walk out?” Jade asked as tears slipped down her cheeks, “I’m beginning to think that you were right. Maybe you are a lost cause, Grady, but not because you don’t have love and support. You’re a lost cause because you sabotage yourself. You don’t know how to change because you’re so stubborn and set in what you believe is right. Well guess what, Grady? Just because you believe something is right doesn’t make it so,” She declared as she shook her head, “I love you. Do you get that at all?”
“I do, Jade, and I love you too, baby,” He said as he reached for her.
She smacked his hand away, “Don’t. Don’t say that. You don’t love anyone, Grady. You’re not capable of it. All you know is hatred and anger, and I’ve had enough of that to last a lifetime,” Jade declared as she walked through the house.
“Jade, where are you going? Jade?!” Grady called out after her as he followed her into the living room.
“I’m leaving, Grady,” Jade grabbed her purse and jacket, “I’m not fighting to get through to you anymore. I’m not fighting anymore,” She surrendered as she threw open the front door and ran down the drive.
“Jade. Jade! Jade!!” Grady cried out after her as she ran away from
his house and from his love.